Career Models and Job Opportunities for the Researchers in Estonia

In modern advanced countries, rapid and sustainable economic growth is achieved, in particular, by increasing the average level of education. In developed countries, both the number of first (on average 23.8% in OECD countries as of 2016) and second-level (master and other equivalent levels of education, 12%) higher education graduates have increased, as well as the number of graduates in the highest level of higher education (doctoral studies, 1%). While the two first levels of higher education have become mass education in the modern world (about 45% of 25-35 years old people have higher education in OECD countries) and constitute an indispensable precondition for competing in a multitude of labour market spheres, a doctoral degree is still an elite top-level education, achieved by a relatively small proportion of the population in society. mparable data on the distribution of doctorate holders between different sectors in different countries: the public sector and the private sector are limited, as the sectoral breakdown varies between countries, and there are gaps in time series for many countries. Current analysis is based on the latest OECD data and despite some discrepancies, the existing data set allows several important conclusions to be drawn. Importantly, these data demonstrate that the proportion of R&D personnel in private sector varies widely among the countries, from 3% in Poland, 4% in Slovakia and 4% in Turkey to 32 % in Austria and 33% in Belgium. rough this work we want to bring to light the strengths and weaknesses of the job opportunities for the researchers in Estonia, comparing the Estonian model with that of the other countries of the European Union.